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I used to play the trumpet in the school band. This man was an inspiration for me. Oh Mein Papa was the first non-Beatles song I learnt by ear. This is another hit from the man with the golden trumpet.

Rostosky
3000 Post Club Member
Registered: 04/30/11
Posts: 3339
Loc: Lost in cyberspace.in the UK.

Hya Dudes and Dudettes, today we kick off with RST members performances of Phillip Glass' Metamorphosis series one through to five.

Recaredo chose Metamorphosis One, and here is what he had to say about his experience and journey with it.

"This piece has inspired me a sort of time travel, since the childhood to some age where the human being can find his fate. Surely this fate will be uncertain, but I believe the human being desires to reach it as much as he loves his own existence.

For the video, I chose these paintings that were painted by my father long time ago, because always I have found them extremely suggestive, and they reflect quite well my idea of this music.

I hope you like it.

I’m looking forward to listening to the rest of the pieces!!"

Edited by Rostosky (09/16/1206:30 AM)

_________________________

Rise like lions after slumber,in unvanquishable number. Shake your chains to earth like dewwhich in sleep has fallen on you. Ye are many,they are few. Shelley

Rostosky
3000 Post Club Member
Registered: 04/30/11
Posts: 3339
Loc: Lost in cyberspace.in the UK.

It was Wayne who started this whole journey off for us, he was the one who originally posted the met pieces up that he found, going on to provide the sheet music for us, Thanks wayne it has been truly magical.

Wayne picked metamorphosis two as his piece, and this is what he has to say about it....

"I first came accross Philip Glass' Metamorphosis part 2 on youtube. I liked it because of it's simple structure, beauty and WOW factor.

Then I listened to Branka Parlic Perform Mets 1 - 5 and became addicted lol. So started out playing the Metamorphosis easy-bit mash-up! Until Dipsey's challange to play Met 2 Seriously.

The challenging bits for me were the arps, I've never played these before, so it made sense to aquire the new skill. (Bars 38 & 56 were definatly the hardest)

I'm not totally happy with my performance, and at times felt like giving up, but I guess if you work hard at what you can't do, you will get there in the end. Maybe in 12 months time, I might beable to play it properly. If it wasn't for working together, it would have certainly ended up in my "to finish" pile. smile. Thnx Guys.

Edited by Rostosky (09/16/1206:36 AM)

_________________________

Rise like lions after slumber,in unvanquishable number. Shake your chains to earth like dewwhich in sleep has fallen on you. Ye are many,they are few. Shelley

Rostosky
3000 Post Club Member
Registered: 04/30/11
Posts: 3339
Loc: Lost in cyberspace.in the UK.

One of our resident newest members to wear the RST badge is Dipsy, Not only did she have to learn her own piece Metamorphosis Three, but had to suffer me learning mine at the same time!! So it may have been twice as hard for her to concentrate!!

This is what Dipsy has to say about her experience with Metamorphosis Three.

"I've played the piano before to amuse myself sight reading til it got difficult, learn to play a piece with technical accuracy for a piano exam, or to get some emotion 'out of my system'.So preparing met 3 was totally different because it needed me to decide for myself how to interpret it, and develop an ability to project the music to a potentially big online audience. I didn't know how to go about it, but as I could sightread, and it seemed very simple. I just played it over and over without giving much thought to interpretation, til much later when I asked advice, and I'm not completely happy with the result. I actually got bored with the music as time went on because it is very repetitive. I hadn't put effort into how to interpret the music. Having said that I've hugely enjoyed this experience - feeling part of a team and sharing our progress as we went along.Getting a decent recording was difficult, as I'd little technical know how and I felt helpless. But we persevered and completed the task to my relief (at one point it seemed as though there would be no recording at all!).I've learned a lot about myself like how I need to be more thorough and disciplined when learning a piece (if things get hard I often give up) and how important its been for me to be doing this with others to ensure I complete the task. I'll be doing Satie's Gymnopedie no 2 next! "

Edited by Rostosky (09/16/1206:42 AM)

_________________________

Rise like lions after slumber,in unvanquishable number. Shake your chains to earth like dewwhich in sleep has fallen on you. Ye are many,they are few. Shelley

Rostosky
3000 Post Club Member
Registered: 04/30/11
Posts: 3339
Loc: Lost in cyberspace.in the UK.

I chose Met four, why you may ask? Believe me over the net few weeks of choosing it, I asked myself the same question over and over, I thought I had got it at one point, only to find out off Dipsys' dad that I most certainly hadn't and had to start at the begining again, beginners errors in abundance!!

Through this journey of met 4, I have felt every emotion possible, depression at not getting it right and believing I never would, confusion aplenty , elation at minor successes, and even anger at myself for messing up the what should be the simple bits once I had got them right.

Then came the recording problems, I wanted so much to record it on the 1830's collard and collard grand that resides in carmarthen museum and that I am allowed to play, this piano was once played by the polish pianist pederewski, and as Phillip glass is jewish, I thought it would be apt.

However it is in a stone walled room with a vaulted ceiling and try as I might I could not get it to record, it kept topping out the sound on my camcorder and bounced off every wall over and over..

I chose met four because it is more than the sum off the two parts ( bass and treble clef) when you practice the bass clef you just hear that.When you practice the treble, you just hear that.

When they go together correctly in the arpeggio section, you get to hear a wonderfull "third voice" and that was what inspired me to even attempt it.

Enough prattling, except to say The red dot of the camcorder freaks me right out and my hands sometimes shake..

For that reason, at the end I have included some out takes and a "Bonus" Klezmer variation that I made up to show how relaxed I am when it doesnt matter anymore!!!!

Edited by Rostosky (09/16/1206:56 AM)

_________________________

Rise like lions after slumber,in unvanquishable number. Shake your chains to earth like dewwhich in sleep has fallen on you. Ye are many,they are few. Shelley

Rostosky
3000 Post Club Member
Registered: 04/30/11
Posts: 3339
Loc: Lost in cyberspace.in the UK.

And last but certainly not least is Rupak perfoming Metamorhosis Five, which brings this Metamorphosis series full circle to completion...

This is what Rupak has to say about his personal journey..

"Firstly, the difficulties that I faced. I think the rhythmic beats was not too hard for me, because my little knowledge and lessons in Tabla helped me a lot to grow some rhythm sense. But I'm not sure, maybe I've overlooked the difficulties smile The cross-handing was a completely new thing to me, so it did took a while to make it right. Another problem that I often face due to the lack of formal training is playing octaves. Often my finger either don't stretch out completely or it slips. Consequently, I had to take special care about playing the octaves that come along with the left hand 2-beats rhythm.

I do like this piece (maybe there are some degrees of liking, for example, I like met 4 more grin, still I like it). Because it's the strange chord combination and rhythm structure that make this piece really unique. All the met pieces have some sort of hypnotic and surrealistic effects."

Edited by Rostosky (09/16/1207:03 AM)

_________________________

Rise like lions after slumber,in unvanquishable number. Shake your chains to earth like dewwhich in sleep has fallen on you. Ye are many,they are few. Shelley

When I heard about the upcoming "concert", I listened to Branka Parlic playing these pieces and ... I confess, it isn't the type of music that I wish to play, but I became very curious to see how fellow ABFers would do on these pieces.

I think the repetitiveness of them must make them easy in some ways, but hard in others.... how to keep your place when there are so many similar parts??? Some of the arpeggios I know would defeat me - I admire the persistence and the hours of practice and study that went into these performances.

Ricaredo -- bravo! Well done. I think you did a great job on bringing out the dynamics of this piece. I've been following your piano journey for a while now, and I really enjoy seeing how you've progressed and developed new skills and techniques! I also enjoyed seeing your father's paintings.

Wayne - great work --- you look so relaxed and "in the zone". You made this look easy to play. I think it is quite something that your enthusiasm for this music spurred you to work and learn new skills to be able to play it. Congratulations on your performance!

Dipsy, I have to say that I agree with you... the repetitiveness of the piece (all of these pieces actually) would make it hard for me to stay interested in learning them. I see your point about the interpetation making all the difference, yet still... I know I'd have trouble with these pieces.

I think that you've done a really good job here - plus the acoustics in the church are quite something and add an extra dimension to the dynamics which is lovely.

I could definitely follow a sense of mood changes and energy differences throughout the piece, so even if you aren't completely satisfied with your performance, it was a stirring one. I like the energy you put into it. I also like the fact that you learned something about yourself from working with this music. I guess that's a type of metamorphosis in itself, isn't it?

Rossy, Well done!! I love the energy you put into and pulled out of this music! Again, I think I'd go bonkers trying to learn it, so I'm full of admiration for what you've done. It must have been frustrating to re-learn things you'd misinterpreted, but wow, what satisfaction to end up playing such a long piece so very well. I listened to your out take, and it seemed a bit richer and fuller - probably because you were more relaxed. I didn't understand the reference to the "Klezmer" variation you did, but it sounded great.

Rupak, last but not least. Lovely job on this one! I too have trouble with octaves... you managed them very nicely. You've got a very delicate but precise touch and your voicing of the dynamics was really well done.

I agree with the idea that there is something a bit hypnotic about these pieces. At one point I was wondering how they would be for background music for meditation.....

Congratulations Recaredo, Wayne, Dipsy, Rossy, and Rupak. This concert is a wonderful achievement for all of you.

I can truthfully say that I enjoyed your performances more than those of the professional --- the fact that you're all fellow forumites just adds such a special dimension to these pieces that increased my listening pleasure several-fold.

Well done one and all --- COMPLIMENTI!

_________________________ ABF Recitals 18-44Another thing you learn along the way is that the music will still be there when you are ready for it. There's no reason to rush. JimF

I just started listening to Recaredo and Wayne's recordings and am eager to hear all of them. So far I am very impressed and moved by the efforts you've both put into your performances. I will be back later today after I've had a chance to listen to the presentations in their entirety.

What a treat for me to get to just listen to some fine piano music of my RST buddies! Thanks!

I'm on my second listen to all of these performances already. It is clear a lot of hard work was done on everyone's performance, and it comes through beautifully. I applaud each one of you because you give much attention to the dynamics. These are particularly important when you're playing pieces like Philip Glass compositions. Without careful attention to these details, his pieces could have been boring and repetitive. That was not the case in any of your presentations.

I was first introduced to Philip Glass when I heard his score to the film, "Koyaanisqatsi." I've always loved the film and score. How wonderful to hear his works for the piano! Thanks for presenting them. I am really excited to hear your next set of performances.

Also, thanks again for making Sunday even more enjoyable by letting me just listen and enjoy!

Thanks so much Cheryl, Griffin and Richard for listening and for your kind words, they are so much appreciated.

I’d like to say that it has been a real pleasure for me to participate in this project together with Wayne, Dipsy, Rossy and Rupak. This has been my first teamwork on the piano, and it’s been amazing. I had my hard time learning Met 1, but this effort was worth it. Definitely, teamwork on the piano is a fantastic experience that I can't recommend highly enough.

Lots of thanks to Cheryl, Griffin, Richard and Becca for listening and appreciating our teamwork! It's the best reward for us to have all of your kind words and encouragements.

It was an wonderful experience for me to learn a piece together. A very special and sincere thanks goes to Wayne, of course. I was a bit hesitated to join at first, so Wayne had some trouble for quite some time to get a volunteer for met 5 But now I'm so happy that I can't wait to get ready for our next recital

Its great to get such encouraging feedback from you - thanks Cheryl, Griffin, Richard and Becca, I'm glad you enjoyed our contributions! I also feel that we've grown through this experience, extending ourselves beyond our comfort zones, by working together towards a common goal.

Satie's Gymnopedies and gnossiennes will be next (for November) though gymnopedie no 2, and Gnossiennes no 1 and 3 are already taken. It would be lovely if we could have enough people to perform all of these pieces (10), so if you're interested in taking part, we'd love you to join us! It'll be fun. Promise!

Great job everyone! What a fun project, sort of a recital with a theme. The playing was excellent by everyone.

But I can't listen to very much Glass music without getting glassy-eyed. It is so boring and repetitious. Sorry. It doesn't help that the pieces are related and have a lot of the same material. It's not your playing, honest. I think I may have dozed off at one point.

Satie is better, but even his music is more wallpaper than a decorating highlight. Only one of the Satie pieces is worth listening too (just my opinion). But I will listen if you let me know when.

By the way, you will get many more people listening and commenting if you do these projects as a subset of the ABF recitals - the next one is in November...

Afternoon all, I just want to say a final thankyou to Recaredo, Dipsey, Rossy and Rupak for making this possible, CHEERS!!!

I think I actually prefer posting our recitals on RST, what do others think?

How about posting on both RST and a separate thread as a sub file of the November recital? Last April I posted the video of my Rhapsody in both the RST thread, and a separate thread. That way folks who do not regularly visit the RST thread have an opportunity to view it. I don't recall any problems with this.

What a great effort you all have given. It really shows in the results. Although this isn't my favorite kind of music, I listened to all the performances and thought each one had unique elements that made it all your own. Even more impressive was that you were able to get this done as a group project. All I can say is , Bravo!!